Pirates Linked to Potential Splash Trade for $115 Million Star

Ahead of the 2026 MLB season, the Pittsburgh Pirates put together an extremely aggressive offseason.

It was clear that after years of being at the bottom of the National League, that the Pirates wanted to make a major push. So far this season, that offseason push has paid off for the team and they are looking like a potential buyer leading up to the trade deadline.

At this point in the year, Pittsburgh holds a 29-26 record.

Heading into Wednesday's matchup against the Chicago Cubs, the Pirates are hot. They have taken the first two games of their series against the NL Central rival and have won five of their last seven games.

Keeping that in mind, some speculation has started popping up about what Pittsburgh could look to do ahead of the trade deadline this summer.

Bleacher Report analyst Tim Kelly has come up with one potential name who would be a perfect fit for the Pirates. He name-dropped Yordan Alvarez as a possible target, although he did admit that a trade for the star slugger is somewhat unrealistic.

"It's probably unrealistic, but imagine if the Pirates traded for the aforementioned Alvarez, replacing a struggling Marcell Ozuna," Kelly wrote.

"Alvarez is making good money, but his deal is still relatively team-friendly, and he's under control for two more seasons after 2026, so you could justify giving up significant prospect capital for him."

Alvarez would be the kind of franchise-changing trade that Pittsburgh should target. He would immediately give the Pirates a face of the lineup kind of player.

So far this season, the 28-year-old star has played in 55 games for the Houston Astros. He has hit 18 home runs to go along with 37 RBI and a slash line of .303/.414/.631.

Currently, Alvarez is in the middle of a six-year, $115 million deal that he signed with the Astros. He has two more years left on his deal following the 2026 season.

More than likely, Houston isn't going to want to move on from Alvarez. However, if he does hit the market, the Pirates would make a lot of sense as a destination.

Expect to hear plenty of rumors in Pittsburgh as the deadline continues drawing closer. Alvarez is a relatively unrealistic option, but he can't be counted out entirely.